I would like to start this piece by expressing my sincerest condolences to the families of the hundreds of migrants who recently lost their lives following the sinking of a vessel 70 miles off the Libyan coast. My thoughts are with them. This tragedy fills me with a range of emotions - from anger to sadness but also determination. My biggest concern is that this is not an isolated incident but a situation that is hurtling out of control and it is only if we bring our minds and hearts together that we can stop this terrible state of affairs that is causing so much loss of life.
As Prime Minister Muscat and Italian Prime Minister Renzi said, the challenge we have is to save lives, but we must also declare war against the unscrupulous traffickers whose one and only interest is to make money - even if this means men, women and children perishing at sea.
My mind dwells on every single person who dies such a horrible death, because every individual comes with a narrative, has a family and is seeking greener pastures. This is not a case of people simply running away from their country but a humanitarian tragedy of enormous proportions that is unfolding before our eyes.
I was touched when I attended the funeral held here in Malta a few days ago to mark this tragedy, especially seeing the casket of a 10-year-old boy being carried on the shoulders of our servicemen. What a terrible situation.
Undoubtedly, this tragedy has been the predominant issue this week but, given the way in which this matter was handled - together with Italy and Greece - I feel proud of Malta and the way we have committed ourselves to giving a signal to Europe to take action. In fact, Dr Muscat has announced that Malta will be hosting an international summit on this issue that will bring all interested parties together.
This week I also participated in the 1st Mare Forum Malta 2015 on behalf of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM). This is an international organisation, established in 2005, as a result of the transformation of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in the Mediterranean (CSCM) process, which began in 1990 under the auspices of the Inter-Parliamentary Union. The Conference dealt with the maritime sector and various maritime-related issues were on the agenda. However, the discussion moved on to the tragic incident and the fact that the whole maritime world was not only distraught but wanted to send a strong message to decision-makers to bring an end to this human plight.
During my address I reiterated my belief that the only solution lies with a courageous and concerted effort by the international community to target the root cause - not of migration itself, but of the undisturbed and growing phenomenon of modern slavery through human trafficking by professional organised crime. I also thanked our rescue personnel who, with limited resources, boldly handled the situation - and I also stressed this when I was replying to a question posed to me by a member of the international press.
I also thanked the merchant ships and their crews for their assistance in the rescue operations: one of the main Laws of the Sea is: "At sea, we are all the same, with no distinction whatsoever".
The bottom line is that although Malta has a crucial role to play, this is not a Maltese problem, it is an international one. Therefore, the action taken must be at global level. We are ready to do our part, as always, and this was and is being recognised everywhere. But we cannot be left alone.
As the Prime Minister rightly pointed out during the ad hoc parliamentary session, we rose to the occasion and, more than ever, he felt proud to be Maltese - and so are we.